The Ice Alpha’s Mate (Aria and Ryder) novel Chapter 82

Chapter 82

ARIA

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Cassandra and I are seated in the diner Uncle Barty and I always come to, with bowls of ice cream in front of us.

She dragged me here because she thought I’d need a sweet treat. She was right; I do feel a little bit better about things now that I’ve gotten everything out of my chest. At first, it felt like the world was ending, but now, I feel like I can actually make it through this.

It’ll be okay. Everything will be okay.

“How’s that? Better?”

It’s like she can read my mind. I find that uncanny about her sometimes. “Yeah. Much better.”

Cassandra nods. “You know, I see a lot of myself in you, Aria. I was a passionate girl like you, too. I don’t want you to feel bad for having hope and giving this relationship your all. I know it might seem like you did something terrible, but love is always worth it. Of course, you had no way of knowing that he lied to you. That’s not your fault either.”

“I should’ve known better.”

“True, but this is a lesson you’ll take for the rest of your life. Love didn’t work out for me, either, but you know what? I found it now with your uncle and it makes me glad that I was patient. That I waited. A lot of women hurry into relationships out of fear of being alone, and so many of them get hurt because of it. I work in healthcare. I

can tell you that confidently.”

I take a deep breath and lower my eyes. I know she has told me not to feel embarrassed. She’s right; I couldn’t have known that Ryder would trick me. That his love wasn’t genuine.

But I should have guessed.

Cassandra closes her hand around my forearm and I meet her gaze again. She smiles sympathetically. “It’s going to be okay.

“He’s not going to reject me.” I cover my face with my cold hand. “I don’t know what he wants from me. I try and try to figure it out, but I can’t.”

“Once he realizes that you mean business, he’ll give you what you want. Don’t worry about it.”

This time, her words don’t reassure me. There’s something Ryder wants and I don’t know what it is. Revenge? Is it all because of our first encounter?

“Have you thought about telling your uncle?”

My eyes widen. “No. I’d be too embarrassed.”

I can’t even begin to fathom how humiliating that would be. My poor uncle doesn’t deserve this. I’ve messed up enough. This won’t be something I’ll add on top of that.

I lied to him. About so much that it scares me.

This attraction to Ryder has morphed me into someone terrible I miss not having a wolf. I didn’t know it at the time, but it was a blessing in disguise.

“He could help you, you know?”

“How? Intimidating the future Alpha of the pack? Have them launch a full investigation and eventually find out about me? About who I am?”

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09:57 Mon, Mar 2

Chapter 82

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“Him being the future Alpha doesn’t give him the right to mess with your feelings or even harass you, Aria. I think you’re being paranoid about the investigation. If they had to find out about you, they would’ve done so a long time ago.”

I shake my head. Maybe I’m being stubborn about this, but won’t give them a reason to kill my uncle. Nope. Ryder won’t get that satisfaction.

He can mess with me all he wants. But my uncle? He should leave him alone.

“Look, I’ll run to the bathroom. You finish your ice cream and we’ll talk more about this back home, alright?” She looks around the diner suspiciously after saying this. “It’s not safe to discuss such topics in public. You never know who might be listening.”

Cassandra climbs off the stool and heads in the direction of the restrooms. I’m alone with my melting bowl of ice cream. Absentmindedly, I spoon some into my mouth.

I’m so distracted by my thoughts of Ryder and this entire embarrassing situation that I don’t notice that someone approaches me until they speak.

“Hi.”

I turn my head to look and see a guy around my age, maybe a little bit older, staring back at me. His hair is dark and he has dimples on his cheeks when he smiles.

There’s a scar running down the entire left side of his face, from his forehead to his jaw. But even with the scar, he’s fairly handsome.

What does he want from me, though?

“Hi,” I say back, even though I’m a little uneasy by his presence.

He clears his throat. “I…guess you might be wondering why I’ve approached you. I saw you from that table over there and I thought you were the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”

His compliment does nothing for me. Maybe I’m too heartbroken and humiliated to care. Still, I manage to say, “Thank you. You’re very kind.”

He smiles and keeps on watching me in a way that makes me uncomfortable. I don’t sense that he’s a creep; it’s not that. It’s just that I’m not used to this kind of attention from anyone.

I’ve never seen him around before.

I mention this and he explains, “Oh, I’m actually here for the tournament.”

“You play hockey?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh.”

“Are you a fan?”

“I guess you could say that. My uncle’s a coach.”

“Nice. Seems like you’re familiar with the sport.”

I leave out the part where I’m a medic in training because I don’ see the relevance of it to this conversation. He tells me, “I hope you didn’t find me, you know, untoward or something.”

“No, I didn’t.”

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09:57 Mon, Mar 2

Chapter 82

“Great,” he smiles. “I…I’d ask you out, but I think it might be too soon for that, right?”

I nod. “Yeah. I guess you’d be right.”

“Good. I’ll…see you then. Around, I mean.”

“How sure are you that you will?” I ask a little dryly.

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“Oh, I’m sure,” he replies before smiling again. He then extends his hand. “I’m sorry. I guess I never asked you for your

name.”

“Aria Murdock. What’s yours?”

“Ray,” he answers. “Ray Laws.”

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09:57 Mon, Mar 2